Chapter 2163 The Great Geographical Discovery, the Pioneer of the Age of Navigation, the Home of Hun
In the official history, if Zheng He's voyages to the West had not been suspended and would not have gone down the old path of blockading coastal ports, destroying ships going to sea, cutting off maritime traffic and closing the country, then the shipbuilding and navigation level of the Central Plains Dynasty would have continued to develop.
, and can completely control and dominate the navigation trade in the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean, and become one of the few maritime powers in the world.
If Zheng He in the official history led the fleet around the Cape of Good Hope, then China would have taken the lead in the great geographical discovery, and might even open up routes to the New World. It would also be the Chinese who were the first to set foot on the land of the Americas. The original trajectory
The world structure will also undergo earth-shaking changes.
Originally, there would be no ifs in the dusty past of official history, but now we have the opportunity to try to realize those "ifs"...
The huge fleet commanded by Li Jun returned to Middle-earth, and two years later, it set sail again to the ocean. With the observation of the sea area, the information for drawing sea charts became increasingly perfect, which was enough to lay a solid foundation for farther sailing, and the route was finally extended to
The Arabian Peninsula and even the East African ports, the coastal countries and ministries that they passed through mostly responded with joy to the North Korean fleet's initiative to invite mutual trade, and naturally they also tried their best to provide various conveniences for the huge Chinese and Turkish fleets.
Unlike Zheng He, who also took on the task of escorting foreign envoys back home during his seventh voyage to the West, the fleet under Li Jun only focused on sailing all the way west. For overseas countries that opened up routes, the Qi Dynasty would also allocate other navies to maintain contact with them.
The sea routes between diplomatic countries are smooth. Li Jun can only focus on continuous expansion, continuous exploration, and continuous development of the overseas world known to Qi Dynasty.
During this period, Li Jun took the initiative and sent envoys to Luo Hu, the capital of the Qi Dynasty, to express his feelings. Emperor Xiao Tang of Siam was invited to give the king a crown and robes, and promised to safeguard his national sovereignty. The Chenla Dynasty
Although it is the most powerful country on the Indochina Peninsula, it has witnessed the Qi Dynasty's huge fleet and the powerful artillery of the Qi Dynasty. The Bagan Dynasty, which is adjacent to the Qi Dynasty in terms of geostrategic situation, has also surrendered to the Central and Eastern Empire as a vassal. Faced with this,
Faced with the powerful military threats on both sides of the waterway, the Chenla Dynasty was unwilling to give the Qi Dynasty any reason to start a war. It turned a blind eye to the subordinate states that broke away from their rule and defected to the Qi Dynasty. From then on, they did not dare to invade Siam anymore.
Luo Hu and other countries.
In Siam, King Luo Hu was grateful for the help of the Qi Dynasty. Not only did he go to the Middle Kingdom for pilgrimage, but every time the fleet commanded by Li Jun returned, the whole country would hold a grand welcome ceremony. Until Siam, Luo Hu
After Siam merged into one country and was called Siam, this country with a large number of Chinese descendants in later generations had statues of Li Jun standing in Lopburi, Chonburi, Pattaya and other places, and they have been worshiped by local people and foreign tourists for generations.
, his appearance and style with thick eyebrows, big eyes, big face, red skin, and an iron-lined mustache can still be admired by future generations...
In this way, although according to Li Jun's original fate track, he went to Yuliuzhuang with the Tong brothers to meet Fei Bao and other Taihu Four Heroes, built a ship, set out to sea from Taicang Port, and sailed to foreign countries, eventually becoming Siam.
The destiny of the king of Luo Kingdom was different. However, Li Jun, who had been personally in charge of the ocean-going fleet, was respected and worshiped by the kings and leaders of overseas countries. He personally changed the fate of many countries, and was even regarded as Hun Hai.
The deeds of the Dragon King building gods and being worshiped by the world can also be passed down from generation to generation.
As the huge fleet led by Li Jun returned again and again, they brought back not only mountains of overseas specialties, many grain seeds that the Qi Dynasty had not had before, rare birds and exotic animals, the expansion of shipping routes, but also products from Africa and the Arab world. There were envoys from sixty or seventy countries including the states on the Indian peninsula and even the Southeast Asian tribes, which at this time were no different from the back gardens of the Middle Eastern Empire. Among them, more than thirty countries were willing to claim vassal status and submit to the Qi Dynasty.
However, the tributary policy adopted by Xiao and Tang towards the vassal states was certainly not a face-saving project to make money at a loss. It carried out multilateral trade and each took what they needed to stimulate the development of the domestic economy. Some of the states urgently needed the Qi Dynasty's military support. , economic support, in order to maintain its own sovereignty and not be violated by neighboring countries. Of course, the Qi Dynasty will also lend a helping hand, but there is no free lunch in the world. If they want to maintain the assistance of the Qi Dynasty, overseas countries must also show their support. With corresponding sincerity, they not only surrendered to the Central-Turk Dynasty as a vassal for generations, but also spared no effort to use the country's geographical and maritime advantages to provide the greatest assistance to the Qi Dynasty.
Although there were naval battles with some forces during this period, Li Jun, Tong Wei, and Tong Meng were commanded by generals who had experienced countless battles and were already proficient in commanding fleet operations in naval battles. The Qi Dynasty fleet was equipped with huge equipment such as The city's naval vessels, various warships with leading workmanship in the world, and various artillery weapons are fully sufficient to defeat any enemy fleet in the world. This is undoubtedly still promoting the powerful national power of the Qi Dynasty, and shocking The coastal countries are more inclined to establish and maintain peaceful and mutual trade relations with the Central and Eastern Empire.
Until the sixth voyage of the Qi Dynasty to the ocean, Mogadishu, which was located in an important seaport in the northeastern part of the African continent, was once called a wooden bone in ancient times (according to the ancient discoveries excavated by German archaeologists in Mogadishu, Somalia, Africa Copper coins (from the standard pattern of the coins, it is believed that the ancient coins came from the Song Dynasty of China), a harbor trading market for frankincense, ivory, and leather was established locally. The Qi Dynasty's sea trade expanded to close trade with Arab countries such as the Ayyubid Dynasty of Egypt. Stage. However, sailing further south was already an unknown and mysterious sea for the Qi Dynasty at that time...
Until this stage, voices of doubt began to appear in the Qi Dynasty, which had made huge profits from overseas trade. Some sergeants and officials of the court believed that although His Majesty's expansion of sea frontiers was an achievement that would benefit the future, now he only needs to maintain the routes he has opened up. It is enough to maintain a huge financial revenue and expenditure through trade routes, so why insist on exploring unknown territories outside the world?
After all, there are unforeseen circumstances in the vast sea. It is impossible for the Qi Dynasty's standing naval force to extend to the East African ports at this stage, and it is now controlled in the Strait of Hormuz, which will be known as the "Oil Strait" in later generations. Although Countries in the Arab world that are willing to engage in maritime trade with Qi Dynasty, but still want to firmly hold the sovereignty of coastal ports in their own hands, will have unnecessary disputes and conflicts... In other words, if Qi Dynasty wants to launch a huge fleet again For unknown ocean exploration, logistical supplies can no longer be effectively guaranteed, and the fleet may not lose its direction in the endless ocean. Not only does this cause more harm than good, but it also costs a lot of money, and it is not impossible for the fleet to sink. In the depths of the ocean, more than ten thousand miles away from China...
However, although Xiao Tang is not very proficient in navigation and exploration, he is the only one who knows what the world map of future generations will look like at this time. He knows very well that sailing south from Mogadishu, Somalia, will also It will pass through Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique and other countries in later generations, and on the vast sea, there will also be Madagascar, Comoros, Mauritius and other islands...
This also reminds Xiao Tang of a simulated real world he once played in later generations. After the great geographical discovery, until the French Revolution in Europe, during the same period the Qing Dynasty began to strictly prohibit the opium trade, this historical strategy game is equivalent to entering a secret map. The fog of exploration has been opened, and the technological points for colonial exploration and expansion have been opened... In addition to maintaining the financial income of sea trade, the conditions for continuing to explore overseas territories that are unknown to China are fully met, and how can there be any harvest? What’s the point of hands?
So Xiao Tang summoned Li Jun, who was already sixty-one years old at the time, for a meeting. He wanted to make sure that this rising star who had entrusted all the affairs of the Privy Council in charge of the navy to other naval forces was only focused on leading the fleet and conducting long-distance exploration. I wonder if my close friends still intend to continue to lead the fleet to sail across the ocean. Li Jun thought for a moment, and finally smiled calmly and said: "Brother, I have been entrusted with an important task, respect wealth and honor, and have seen thousands of overseas scenery. , it is said that this life has been in vain... But if you ask me about my current wish... I really still want to see the scenery at the end of the world, what will it be like?"